Published 8:00 pm, Wednesday, February 6, 2002

The victory was the 15th straight overall by the Lady Techsters (17-3, 12-0 Western Athletic), and ended the five-game winning streak by Hawaii (15-5, 8-3). Louisiana Tech, which has not lost since a 74-50 defeat to top-ranked Connecticut in December, got its first 63 straight league wins in the Sun Belt Conference.

Chelsea Wagner led Hawaii with 18 points.

Ford made 7-of-18 shots, including two 3-pointers. Erica Smith added 14 points for the Lady Techsters on 5-of-6 shooting.

Tech went on runs of 10-0 and 20-4 during the first half to take a 46-22 lead at the break, then led by 22 or more points in the final 20 minutes.

Amber Obaze added 13 points for the Lady Techsters, and Ayana Walker and Brooke Lassiter had 10 apiece. Walker also had nine rebounds.

Hawaii shot only 5-for-17 from 3-point range, while Tech was 7-for-12 from long distance.

Tech outshot Hawaii 47 percent to 33 percent, and Tech was able to turn the game into a blowout early by holding Hawaii to only 26 percent shooting in the first half.